


Teach Me

by Awhratz



Category: Carole & Tuesday (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst, F/F, Fluff, M/M, Other, Teacher-Student Relationship, by which i mean scars but just to be safe, idk how tags work, no beta readers we die like men, possible eating disorder mentions, possible self harm mentions, trans!pyotr, trans!roddy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-16
Updated: 2020-04-03
Packaged: 2021-02-27 07:00:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,752
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22283014
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Awhratz/pseuds/Awhratz
Summary: Roddy has just started university, attending Mr. Ertegun’s Computer Science classes. The thing is, Roddy has had a bit of a crush on his teacher ever since he researched him, and his charm definitely doesn’t help.he’s really gotten himself into a mess, hasn’t he?
Relationships: Ertegun & Roddy (Carole & Tuesday), Ertegun/Roddy (Carole & Tuesday), Pyotr/Spencer Simmons, Tuesday Simmons/Carole Stanley
Comments: 6
Kudos: 45





	1. Chapter 1

“And that concludes today’s lesson. Please make sure to read chapter 2 by tomorrow, I will be quizzing some of you on it. After all, I need to see how capable my students are. If you have any more questions, feel free to come up to me, visit my office hours or even send me an email if my presence is just too radiant for you to come closer.”

That last bit finally shook Roddy out of the daydream he had spent the better part of the last five minutes in. As he looked away from his teacher to put his laptop into his bag, he couldn’t help but feel the tiniest pang of sadness at the fact that class was already over.

He wasn’t usually the daydreaming type, especially not in class, but he couldn’t help getting caught up in Mr. Ertegun’s bright smile every time someone answered his questions correctly.

Mr. Ertegun, whom Roddy had met in person only today, was quite a peculiar, but also ridiculously charming man. He had entered the course room in a well tailored yellow suit, and Roddy couldn’t help but immediately notice how broad his shoulders were.

Roddy had watched as his teacher strode to the middle of the room where his desk was, confidence radiating from him with every step he took.

As soon as Mr. Ertegun had arrived in front of his desk, he’d turned to face the crowd and thrown his hands up, grinning as he yelled out: “Good morning! I am Mr. Ertegun, and you all have the honour of being taught by me this year!”

Maybe this level of confidence was to be expected though, Roddy thought. After all, the man was a genius in his field.

He might have done a little (a lot) of digging into the Computer Science prodigy that was printed onto his information sheet as soon as he got his hands on it at the start of summer. Professor J. Ertegun was the author of multiple academic books, including the one they were using in class.

The same J. Ertegun had also offered free PDF versions of that book to his students via mail, and Roddy could not have been more starstruck when he received an email from him two weeks into summer break.

He might’ve spent the rest of the break studying the first few chapters of that same book, just to make sure he would make a good first impression.

And yet, despite all of this digging and preparation, Roddy couldn’t help but be absolutely in awe the first time he saw Mr. Ertegun.

No article could’ve prepared him for the way he carried himself, the way his smooth voice carried itself through the air and made Roddy’s breath hitch for a split second every time he spoke. No press image or video could’ve prepared him for the way his eyes sparkled with interest, confidence, and a faint touch of mischief, or the way his lashes cast beautiful shadows onto his cheeks.

Roddy was smitten immediately, though he insisted on just calling it admiration.

Now, after an hour of (mostly) listening to Mr. Ertegun speak, Roddy had to admit: the man was not quite what he had expected. Roddy had expected someone as academically successful as Mr. Ertegun to be much more calm and composed. Instead, he radiated the energy of a overly confident golden retriever, especially with the way he preferred to lounge on top of his desk instead of sitting at it, or how he would jump up excitedly as soon as he got asked a question, pacing around as he answered them in his deep, energetic voice.

Roddy found his voice to be quite soothing, but he would never admit that to anyone.

He grabbed his bag, now fully packed, and cast a last long look at his teacher, who was once again lounging on his desk, talking to a student that had come up to him. The way Mr. Ertegun laughed when the student said something (Roddy couldn’t make the words out despite sitting in the front row) made his heart feel inexplicably heavy. He quickly shook that feeling off, shouldered his bag, and hurried to the exit before he was accused of staring.

-

As he was walking down the hall, mind still occupied with his teacher and that annoying female student he had been talking to, he nearly collided with a large white object. As he snapped his head up in surprise, he realised that said large white object was actually his friend, Tuesday, wearing a beautiful white petticoat dress and looking like the cutest dandelion in the world.

Her shocked face softened the second she laid her eyes upon his face, smiling at him before speaking.

“Roddy! You look a bit lost in thought, is everything okay? Did something happen?”

Before he could even gather his thoughts enough to form a response, his other friend ( and also Tuesdays girlfriend) Carole chimed in with a big grin:

“Didn’t you have your first class with Mr. Ertegun today? Oh, you totally did! Don’t think I didn’t see that blush! What is he like? Is he living up to your expectations?”

“Oh! The one he was gushing about all summer?” Tuesday turned to face Roddy again, “Tell is everything! I want all the details!” She grabbed his arm just above his elbow, basically eliminating his chances of escaping from his nosy friends.

And anyways. Roddy hasn’t been gushing, look, he _might_ have talked about Mr. Ertegun and his research a _few_ times, and send his friends a _handful_ of pictures and interviews he stumbled upon, and mentioned the way his smile looks so infectious on _some occasions…_

Okay. Roddy had definitely been gushing. But it wasn’t his fault that Mr. Ertegun was just so incredible. How could anyone look at him and _not_ gush?

Face still flushed, Roddy finally managed to speak:

“He was great. It was great. He's a very good teacher. Easy to follow.”

Theoretically speaking, Roddy wasn't lying. He was sure he could easily have followed the man, if he had managed to stop getting distracted by his looks. His explanations always made sense, even if they tended to get pretty longwinded, probably because Mr. Ertegun loved hearing himself talk. He definitely couldn’t blame him.

And yet, despite _technically_ telling the truth (though omitting most of the details), Roddy found himself blushing more with every word, effectively giving himself away.

“Oh Roddy, you've really got it bad already”, mused Carole, throwing her arm around his shoulders in a grand gesture.

“Wh- what?” Roddy fought hard to keep the stutter out of his voice, failing miserably, “What do you mean by that?”

“Well it's obvious, isn't it? You have a crush on Mr. Ertegun!”

Roddy’s shoulders jerked up as he scrambled to find a response.

“W- what? No! It’s just- I’m- Ugh! You guys are the worst!”, he wailed, burying his face in his hands. “It’s not a crush!”

Tuesday, who had since released her grasp on his arm and had instead taking to gently patting it, gave him a sympathetic look.

“Awww, whatever you say, Roddy.”

-

The rest of Roddy’s classes passed pretty uneventful, being mostly filled with introductory chapters and easy material that he had either already studied or understood within the first five minutes of class, so he took it upon himself to find another form of entertainment.

He decided, for no reason in particular, to hack into the class roster for Mr. Ertegun’s course. Not because he was jealous and wanted to find that girl from earlier. That would be absurd. And weird.

Okay. He _might_ have done exactly that. But only because it was so incredibly easy.

Actually hacking into the class roster took him less than ten minutes. He knew that he _definitely_ shouldn’t be doing it, but curiosity got the better of him in the end. Before he even had time to consider the consequences, the list popped up in front of him.

Finding out her name was the harder part. Mr. Ertegun’s class was visited by 56 students, 23 of them female. He had to plug each of them into his search engine and browse the pictures and social media profiles connected to them. After about 30 minutes of that, he finally got a hit.

Cybelle Smith. Now it was time to get to the juicy bits.

-

He was still browsing through her social media when he was walking to his dorm after class. Cybelle was a pretty girl, though she had an off-putting air to her. With her sleek black hair and ivory skin, she reminded Roddy of the dolls he used to see walking past the antiques shop after class.

Sadly, her Instagram hadn’t given him any of the information he was looking for, and her Facebook, like most people’s, was long abandoned.

The last thing left to check was twitter, and after a few minutes of browsing he finally got his answers.

@Cybellin3 tweeted two days ago: “My girlfriend truly is the light of my life, and I don’t know where I would be without her. Happy six months baby, I look forward to many more!”

Attached to the tweet was a picture of Cybelle and a girl Roddy assumed to be her girlfriend. She had long blonde hair and a dusting of freckles on her face, For a second, Roddy could’ve sworn she looked like his friend Tuesday, but after closer inspection he realized how different their facial structure was.

For some reason, Roddy felt much lighter after reading that tweet, as if a heavy weight had been lifted from his chest. Of course, he hadn’t been jealous. He would never. And if anyone, especially Carole or Tuesday, suggested that, he would definitely deny it.

Not that Roddy would ever have a chance with Mr. Ertegun, assuming he wanted such a thing. Which he didn’t.

Aside from the fact that he was his literal teacher, Mr.Ertegun probably didn’t even swing that way. And if he did, it most definitely wouldn’t be for Roddy.

Roddy wouldn’t call himself ugly, just plain. Unremarkable. His reddish hair usually covered most of his face in an attempt to hide his anime-related eye bags, and his fashion sense probably wasn’t turning any heads either (though he would never, NEVER, give up his favourite jeans jacket).

Where Mr. Ertegun was strong and well built, Roddy was both soft and wiry. Where others stood proud, his shoulders were slumped in an attempt to hide the bump his binder left. Not to mention how short he was compared to the rest of his classmates. Even a few of the girls were taller than him, though he blamed that on their heels.

All in all, he just couldn’t see himself ever being anyones type, especially not Mr. Ertegun’s. And that realization hurt more than he expected it to.

He closed twitter and put his phone in his pocket, wanting to think of other things for a bit.

But of course, the universe doesn’t play nice, especially not for Roddy.

As he let his eyes wander around the perimeter, he locked eyes with none other than the very man he had been thinking about. Professor J. Ertegun.

Of. Fucking. Course.

To Roddy’s horror, he saw Mr. Ertegun’s eyes light up with recognition as he gave him a big smile. Lord have mercy on him. Roddy, caught completely off guard, managed to return a smile and a wave before turning and _aggressively_ power walking to his dorm building, probably looking like an absolute fool.

He absolutely blew that. Oh well.

-

When he finally arrived in front of his dorm a few minutes later, hew had managed to shake off most of the embarrassment from that encounter. He was ready to just eat some ramen, do his homework, and repress that scene forever.

The second he entered his dorm, an energetic green haired boy was on him, tackling him with a hug.

“Pow!” he laughed, taking a step back from the redhead and grabbing his wrists instead. “How was your day? How are you doing? You look tired!”

His friend and flatmate, Pyotr, was bouncing around, as always. Something about him radiated even more excitement than usual, but before Roddy could even open his mouth, Pyotr was pulling him towards the kitchen.

“Roddy, I’d like you to meet someone I love very dearly! This is my best friend and bandmate, GGK!”


	2. Chapter 2

GGK, whom Roddy had heard much about but never actually had a chance to meet, turned out to be a second year art student, which explained some of her peculiarity, but definitely not all of it. She had apparently first entered the university as an astrology student, but had quickly gotten tired of the teacher, who she claimed had “no idea what he was talking about”. Still, despite her quirky nature, Roddy found her to be quite charming.

As she lounged on the boys’ couch, stretching and in the process showing off the holographic fabric of her crop top, she told Roddy about her “connection to the universe”, and how it compelled her to create art and music.

Now, Roddy didn’t usually do all that space-zodiac-universe stuff and honestly knew quite little of it, but with the way GGK’s voice shone with confidence, Roddy was tempted to believe her.

Currently, both GGK and Roddy were listening to Pyotr, who was excitedly gushing about a boy he had seen earlier:

“He was so cute! You know I’m not the dramatic type, but it might’ve been love at first sight!”

“Pyotr, it’s always love at first sight with you. Remember the coffee shop cashier last month?”, Roddy interjected.

“That was nothing, I was young and inexperienced! This is different, Roddy, I mean it! He walked in and as soon as our eyes met I was a goner. His smile was so pretty, and don’t get me _started_ on his voice! He was just completely breathtaking!”

“So basically, you have a crush on Mr. Ertegun’s teaching assistant?”, Roddy said in an inquisitive tone, already knowing the answer. He tried to not show any emotion as he spoke his teacher’s name, scared that his expression could betray him and tip off Pyotr, who was ridiculously good at telling when Roddy had a crush.

Not that that was the case. But he just wanted to be safe.

Mr. Ertegun taught the “advanced digital media” class that Pyotr attended, which was another reason Roddy couldn’t let the green haired boy know about his _hypothetical_ crush on the teacher they shared.

Pyotr let out a theatrical gasp. ”Not just _any_ old teaching assistant, Roddy!”, he cupped his hands around his face before continuing, “Spencer Simmons, the cutest, most amazing teaching assistant on mars! Not only is he a law student, I searched his social media right after class and found out that his family has _horses_! Actual, real horses! He’s like a real life Prince Charming, golden hair and everything!”

GGK smiled at that, and said, in her usual tranquil voice: “You and your Prince Charming are going to work out great, moon child, I can feel it.”

Pyotr grinned the biggest grin at the nickname and his friend’s comment, and turned to try and tackle-hug his friend. Seeing as they were both sitting on the couch, it turned out quite awkward looking, but neither of the, seemed to care. After a few seconds of that, he let go of his friend and instead grabbed his phone off of the coffee table.

“I have to film a little clip of this, my fans are gonna love seeing my two favourite people together! Plus, I have to tell them about the pretty TA!”

Pyotr, who was quite big on social media, regularly filmed vlogs in the most random places, including, but not limited to, the restrooms of clubs, random alleyways he was walking through, and one time even a classroom. He was dedicated to letting his fans know about everything going on in his life.

Roddy didn’t mind appearing in his friend’s videos, despite being quite camera shy, because he could see how happy it made Pyotr. It was hard to say no to a happy, smiling Pyotr.

“Pow! Hello there, all my beautiful followers! I’m here with my friends GGK and Roddy, though I’m sure you guys already recognised them. Say hi, guys!”

As Pyotr pointed the camera at them, GGK did a little bow and smiled, while Roddy did a little wave, not quite being able to shake off the awkwardness that came whenever the camera was focused on him. The things he did for his friend.

Pyotr went on with his usual vlog routine, telling his fans about his day and sparing no detail about Spencer, except for his name. Hearing his friend vividly describing his crush made Roddy’s own mind wander for a second, and before he knew it he was thinking about Mr. Ertegun’s smile again. As soon as he realized that his thoughts were drifting, he forced himself to snap out of his daydream and redirect his attention back to Pyotr, who was still very much gushing.

Just as the other boy was going on a tangent about his “Prince Charming’s” eyes, GGK suddenly turned to face Roddy with an intense expression.

“Whoever it is you’re loving must be very lucky.”

Roddy, startled, couldn’t help but blush as he tried to stammer out a response: “W-what? What do you mean?”

“Well it’s obvious, isn’t it?”, GGK asked, holding one of her hands over her heart and poking Roddy in the sternum with the other, making his breath hitch in fear that she could feel his binder. Unfazed, GGK continued: “The universe resides in me, Roddy. And it’s letting me feel all the love that radiates from you. It’s nothing to be embarrassed about, I find it to be quite beautiful.” She gave him a warm smile as she let her hands drop back into her lap.

Maybe the universe really did communicate with her, Roddy thought as he buried his face in his hands, still blushing furiously. Or maybe she was just high and really good at reading people. Either way, Roddy found himself so preoccupied with GGK’s statement that he didn’t notice Pyotr standing in front of him, camera pointed directly at his face. Well, not until it was too late.

“Ooh! Dear viewers, it seems like our very own Roddy has a bit of a crush too! Do tell us more!”

Just as he was about to open his mouth to blurt out a hasty excuse that Pyotr would definitely see through, Roddy heard the door open.

Oh thank the _lord._ Ezekiel was back.

Ezekiel, first year social studies student and occasional rapper, had finally finished up his latest recording session and returned to the dorm just at the right moment. Realistically speaking, Ezekiel was the only one in their dorm with more than one functioning brain cell, and had thus already become the dad friend on the second day of university.

“Guys, what’s the commotion about? Please tell me you didn’t set anything on fire”, he called out as he closed the door, heading towards the living room. He stopped in his tracks the second he saw GGK.

“Oh, hi there.”, he turned to Pyotr, “Now, why is there a girl on our couch?”

After introducing GGK and Ezekiel to each other, the two of them almost immediately struck up a conversation about indie rappers, which neither Pyotr nor him could contribute much to. This, luckily, meant that there was one less pair of eyes on Roddy now. All he had to do now was get the hell out of the living room before his very curious friend remembered the conversation they had been leading before getting interrupted. So, Roddy decided to quickly make himself a cup of instant noodles, skillfully ignoring Pyotr comments on their nonexistent nutritional value, blurt out some lame excuse about coursework, and briskly walk down the hall to his room.

-

Seeing as their dorm was quite small, Roddy quickly found himself in his room, sighing in relief as he let himself sink into his chair.

With the way the student housing was structured, his room was the second door on the left, assuming you were coming from the living room. The first door led to a small restroom, equipped only with a sink and a toilet, seeing as even a university as well known as Mars Academy relied on communal showers. The room opposite of his was occupied by his two friends, containing two complete sets of furniture and tons of decorations, courtesy of Pyotr. Apart from these rooms, their “flat” also contained a small kitchen and an area that doubled as both living and dining room.

Roddy himself had lucked out, not having to share his room with anyone as his roommate has never shown up. The boy that was originally meant to occupy the second bed in the room was apparently some sort of urban legend, and Roddy wondered how the news of his mysterious absence had spread that fast.

Apparently, some people believed that the boy, Tao, had decided to leave mars altogether and had started a new life on earth. Other insist that he dropped off the grid, completely vanishing in the shadows of mars’ underground hacking scene. Yet another small group was convinced that he had never actually existed in the first place, and that his name was actually just a glitch in the system.

Roddy thought that Tao had probably opted for online classes at the last minute, and hadn’t bothered to have his name removed from the dorm roster. But he wasn’t about to ruin his fellow students’ fun by proposing that idea to them.

Whichever one it was, Roddy was grateful for Tao’s absence, as it meant more space and a lot more privacy for him.

-

After the noise in the living room had died down, Roddy finally dared to leave his room again. It wasn’t like he didn’t like spending time with his friends, but he had to avoid awkward questions at any cost. When he entered the living room, he found only Ezekiel, sitting on the couch with his headphones on, completely engrossed in his phone. Okay, so Pyotr was probably accompanying GGK back to her room.

Roddy decided to take advantage of the fact that his lovable but very nosy friend was otherwise occupied, and decided to get ready for bed. A quick look at the clock mounted on the wall solidified his decision, it was already 9:30 pm. The hot water would be shut off at 10. Why the administration decided to do that, Roddy didn’t know, but he guessed it had something to do with not wanting night owls to disturb the people living in the dorms closest to the showers.

After a quick stop in his room to pick up fresh clothes and his shower stuff, Roddy hurried to the showers, both to catch some hot water and to avoid running into any classmates. While, theoretically, he knew that he passed well enough, the thought of being seen entering the boy’s showers still made him anxious. Luckily, nobody was out in the hall, and Roddy quickly settled into one of the shower cabins, taking comfort in the opaque shower curtain that hid him from any potential intruder’s view.

After a quick hot shower, during which his mind definitely didn’t wander back to a certain teacher, Roddy dried off and got changed, still hiding behind the curtains. He listened very closely before he opened it, feeling vulnerable now that his binder was off. He brushed his teeth in record time and then hurried back to his dorm, not wanting to be seen in his robot-pattern shorts by anyone that wasn’t his roommate.

Pyotr still wasn’t back when Roddy re-entered the dorm, and Ezekiel was still focused on whatever it was he was doing on his phone, so nobody interrupted Roddy as he went into the kitchen to get a glass of water to help him swallow his medicine. Roddy would never understand how some people just swallowed their pills without water. Sociopaths.

After his short trip to the kitchen, Roddy once again got comfy in his desk chair, opening the top drawer and pulling out a little sachet. It was time for his hormones. As much as he loved the changes testosterone made to his body, he hated having to apply it.

As he pulled up one of his short’s legs to expose his thigh, he thought back to 4 months prior, when he had first received his prescription. He had been over the moon until he realized he had no idea how to apply the gel. So, not knowing what else to do, he had called Pyotr for help. Pyotr, having been on testosterone for over a year and having only recently switched to bi-weekly shots, had done the absolute most and came over to help Roddy in person. Moments like these were what really made Roddy cherish Pyotr as a friend.

Now, he had a pretty good idea of what to do with his hormone gel, though it didn’t make the sensation any nicer. It was cold and uncomfortable and it felt gross on his skin when it dried. He honestly could not wait to switch to shots, but his doctor had advised him to wait just a little longer.

The worst part over, Roddy pulled his shorts back down over his thigh, trying his best not to let his eyes linger on the pale raised lines standing out against the rest of his skin. They made him nauseous to think about, so he preferred not to dwell on them for too long.

Looking for distraction, Roddy started up his computer and typed the name of his favorite anime into the search window. Immediately, his usual streaming service popped up and he pressed play on the first episode, ready to rewatch it for what must’ve been the 14th time.

However, he just couldn’t seem to get into it today. His mind was still occupied with the gray haired professor he had met only today. Well, personally at least. He couldn’t deny that there was something pulling him towards his teacher, though he wasn’t quite ready to call it attraction.

Sighing in defeat, he closed the streaming window and opened YouTube instead, typing in the words his fingers had memorized by now: “Professor J. Ertegun full interview”.

Roddy knew how shameful this was, but he also knew that he wouldn’t be able to rest until he heard Mr. Ertegun’s voice again. Just for a little bit.

-

He woke up the next morning to the sound of Mr. Ertegun’s laugh.

For a second, he just enjoyed the sound. Then, he realized. He quickly shot up from his desk, which he had fallen asleep in, and looked for the source of the sound. He found it very quickly.

His computer was still autoplaying interviews. Oh no. Roddy felt his face flush with shame as he went to close the tab. Had he really fallen asleep to his teachers voice?

Yes. Yes he had. He didn’t have much time to dwell on the implications of that situation though, as there was morning classes waiting for him. So he grabbed his binder, struggled to put it on, and then went out into the kitchen for some water, taking his bottle of meds out into the kitchen with him.

He was the only one up, so he guessed the other two didn’t have class this early today. He didn’t mind the silence, plus it meant that his dorm mates were most definitely unaware of what Roddy had woken up to today.

For a second, Roddy considered making breakfast. He quickly pushed that thought aside, though, and just settled for his glass of water, swallowing his meds before returning to his room.

Back in his room, Roddy grabbed his toothbrush and toothpaste, looking himself up and down in the mirror that was installed on the wall. He pulled his shirt up just a little, sucked in his stomach and turned to the side, watching his stomach inflate the second he released his breath.

Enough of that, he told himself, and left his room, wanting to quickly brush his teeth _before_ getting dressed so he wouldn’t get any unfortunate stains on his clothes.

While walking to the bathroom, too tired to worry about hurrying, Roddy allowed himself to think of Mr. Ertegun. Should he try and get his attention by being more active in class, or was he better off keeping quiet and watching him from afar?

His train of thought came to an abrupt end as soon as he entered the showers, because standing in the middle of the room, with nothing but a towel wrapped dangerously low around his hips, was Mr. Ertegun.

“Oh no, he’s hot”, was the first thing that came to Roddy’s mind. Mr. Ertegun was well built, abs still glistening with water, his V-line prominent despite the towel draped over it.

Then it dawned on Roddy.

_What the fuck is he doing in here?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one ended up being a long one. Big thanks again to my bf for being supportive and always hyping me up. Also big thanks to everyone who left kudos or commented on the last chapter!
> 
> Also pls ignore any typos I wrote this on v little sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m sorry this one turned out a little short, I’ll make up for it ;)

“What the _fuck_ is he doing here?”, Roddy echoed, face still flushed. Pyotr, whom Roddy had, quite literally, ran into as he’d hurried back to their dorm, stifled a laugh before he answered:

“Oh Roddy, didn’t you check the bulletin board? The plumbing in the teachers’ housing units broke, so for now the teachers that live on site, which is luckily quite few, have to use the dorm showers along with the students. It should be fixed by Monday, and all the cubicles have curtains, so it’s really not too bad.”

“Not too bad? Pyotr, how am I supposed to survive that long? That’s my teacher! I literally have class with him in thirty minutes!”

“Oh Roddy, we both know that that’s not all there is to it. Sure, seeing a teacher shirtless isn’t something most people want, but your reaction was just a bit too excited. Not to mention, your face goes red every time I mention Mr. Ertegun. I might not be as clever at figuring people out as GGK is, but even I can tell what’s going on here! You totally have the hots for our professor!”, Pyotr smiled a self satisfied smile, having finally figured out why his friend was acting so off.

Roddy blushed, face going even redder as it had previously been, and hid his face in his hands, not even bothering to try and deny it anymore. Not like he really could at this point.

Sure, he could keep insisting that it was nothing but admiration, but he didn’t really believe it anymore. He thought about Mr. Ertegun’s smile, and about the reaction it got out of him, thought about his voice and his face and how it made Roddy’s heart skip a beat to hear him laugh. The second Pyotr had said it out loud, it was suddenly clear to him.

He had a hopeless crush on Mr. Ertegun.

Admitting it, both to Pyotr and to himself, didn’t make him feel any better, but at least it was out there now. Sadly, his feelings weren’t a valid excuse to skip his classes, even after such a, while not unwelcome, still quite startling sight.

So, with the image of Mr. Ertegun’s shirtless form still fresh in his mind, Roddy mumbled a “later” to Pyotr and rushed to get dressed.

-

That day, classes were a blur for Roddy. No matter how hard he tried to concentrate on class, to keep himself occupied and busy, his mind would inevitably wander back to that morning, to the way Mr. Ertegun had stood there, unbothered, hair still wet as he’d brushed his teeth.

It didn’t make it better that his very first class that day was Mr. Ertegun’s.

He had tried to sit in one of the back rows, but his professor had made eye contact with him and asked him to move up front, so he’d “have an easier time keeping an eye on everyone”. Roddy was convinced that fate was playing a cruel game with him. He’d kept his head low for the rest of the two-hour class, silently taking notes whenever he could get himself to focus. He would definitely have to go over that chapter again as soon as he had the time. After all, he couldn’t let his grades slip over a crush.

Especially if that crush was also _leading_ the class he visited.

The rest of the day went by fast, with Roddy slipping in and out of his daydreams, remaining mostly undisturbed by his teachers.

As he was walking through the halls after his last class, heading for the exit, he spotted a blonde head a few meters in front of him.

“Tuesday! Wait up!”, he yelled out as he broke into a short sprint, trying to catch up to his friend.

Tuesday, startled by suddenly hearing her name, relaxed as soon as she saw her friend approaching.

“Roddy! How are you? You look a bit sick, are you sleeping enough?”

“It’s a long story, Tuesday. Say, where’s Carole?”, Roddy asked, looking around for his other friend.

“She wasn’t feeling too well so she went back to the dorm early. Now, tell me what’s going on. You can’t just say something like that and not tell me everything!”

Roddy took a deep breath before starting:

“Remember Mr. Ertegun? Yeah, well. I _might_ possibly have a bit of a crush on him. It’s exhausting.” He sighed. “Also, I saw him shirtless today and I still haven’t recovered. What business does he have being this well built? It’s unfair!”

“Wait _what_? Roddy, why did you see your teacher shirtless? What did you _do?”,_ Tuesday asked, shock once again written all over her face.

“It’s not what you think, I promise!”, Roddy exclaimed, blushing. “The piping in the teachers’ quarters is broken, so they all have to use dorm showers. It’s a nightmare. I don’t know how to handle this.”

“Awh Roddy, it could be worse! At least you can enjoy the view”, Tuesday giggled, obviously enjoying teasing Roddy.

Roddy buried his face in his hands. “You’re horrible.”

-

On Thursday, Pyotr felt brave. He was usually confident and outgoing, but being brave was a different story. So, as he sat in his morning class, he decided to take action.

As he looked over his laptop, not paying much attention to whatever Mr. Ertegun was currently rambling about, his eyes caught Spencer’s. He expected the blond to quickly look away and was caught off guard when he instead held his gaze. As he felt his cheeks start to tingle with a blush, he quickly looked away. He could feel Spencer’s eyes on him for another, torturously long second, and resisted the urge to hide behind his laptop screen.

What was going on with him? Pyotr wasn’t one to blush easily, and he definitely wasn’t one to ever shy away from attention. So why was it different with Spencer?

Nonetheless, he found himself walking towards the teaching assistants desk as soon as the bell rang. As he approached, Spencer looked up and smiled at him. It was now or never.

Pyotr took a deep breath to calm his nerves, smiled his confident smile he knew would woo almost everything, and closed the distance between his TA’s desk and himself.

“Hey, Spencer! How are you doing?”, he grinned, leaning onto the desk and cocking his head to the side.

“Oh, I’m alright, what about you? Any questions about the class?”, Spencer asked, smiling kindly. Usually, such a question would seem dismissive, but it was obvious that Spencer was genuinely trying to be helpful.

“Oh no, nothing like that, I’m great! I was just wondering what you’re gonna be up to this afternoon?”

Spencer let out a little laugh, a response to Pyotr’s blunt enthusiasm, before answering:

“Oh, nothing much. Just picking up my boyfriend from the airport. He’s a journalist, maybe you’ve heard of him? His name is Kyle.”

_Ouch._

Did you hear that? It was Pyotr’s heart dropping and shattering on the ground. A _boyfriend._ Of course. Of course Prince Charming wouldn’t be single. God, he was so stupid.

Still smiling, though now only through muscle memory, Pyotr replied: “Oh? I don’t believe I have. How interesting!”

He had to get out of there. Fast.

But of course, Spencer, unaware of his conversation partners emotional turmoil, continued the conversation.

“Did you wanna schedule some tutoring? Wait, I’ll give you my number. Shoot me a text if you ever need anything!”

He grabbed a piece of paper from a stack on his desk, and scribbled his number on it before handing it to Pyotr. He accepted the slip of paper, still keeping up that smile despite it being painful, and excused himself from the room, using his next class as an excuse.

As he walked, trying to keep the tears stinging in his eyes from falling, Pyotr looked at the paper he was clutching. _Of course,_ Spencer’s handwriting was immaculate and beautiful to look at. He had even added a small smiley face at the end.

He stuffed it into his back pocket and sped up his steps, trying to get to his next class in time.

-

Friday came, and Roddy could not have been happier. He’d managed to avoid Mr. Ertegun with help of Pyotr, who had gone and checked the showers for signs of the grey haired teacher before texting Roddy. He really was a blessing.

Still, he spent Mr. Ertegun’s class completely zoned out. How was the rest of his class concentrating when Mr. Ertegun looked and talked like _that?_ It was a mystery to him.

He was very glad that he was still ahead of his class, because he was definitely not learning anything right now. Nothing useful, anyways.

He _did_ learn, however, from the self-cantered tangents Mr. Ertegun liked to go on, that his favourite genre of music was techno, and that he liked his coffee without milk, but with three cubes of sugar. Roddy didn’t know what that had to do with the basics of AI, but he filed it in his brain anyways. _Just in case_ , he thought.

In the end, Roddy found himself daydreaming through most of the 2-hour-class.

Because of this, he was quite startled when the bell finally rang. Roddy jumped up, tossing his stuff into his bag as fast as he could.

_Out, out, just gotta get out before he talks to me._

But of course, the universe had other plans. As it always seemed to do with Roddy.

He realised this as soon as he heard Mr. Ertegun clearing his throat.

_Oh no._

“Roddy! Don’t leave yet, I’d like to have a word with you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ve returned from the void to bring you a new chapter on Valentine’s Day. I hope you enjoy it, whether you’re alone or with someone else! Remember that today is about all love, not just romantic love.
> 
> As always, this is dedicated to @asmallnerd and @pajama-cats on tumblr for being the most amazing people in the fandom!


	4. Chapter 4

On Friday, Pyotr woke up alone.

Roddy’s classes started earlier than his, and, seeing as there was no music playing in the kitchen and no boy in the bed on the other side of the room, Ezekiel had probably spent the night elsewhere. This left Pyotr with the entire dorm to himself. Usually, he’d have, quite literally, jumped at the opportunity to blast his favorite artist and sing along, but today he just wanted to throw the covers over his head and sleep the day away.

With a sigh, Pyotr shook off the idea as he sat up in his bed and looked around. They had all only been in the dorms for a week, but he’d already decorated his half of the shared bedroom. Posters of his favorite bands hung on the walls, alongside printed pictures of himself and his friends. Of course, like any vlogger, fairy lights and assorted fan mail were also attached to the part of the wall directly behind his bed. Pyotr considered his half of the room to be quite aesthetically pleasing. Ezekiel’s, not so much.

His roommate didn’t care much for interior design and it showed. The walls were bare, some of his stuff still stashed away in moving boxes. The only splash of personality in Ezekiel’s space were the sheets of song lyrics strewn on the floor, alongside the boy’s bass. Pyotr had never heard him play, but then again, he was usually out most of the day, either vlogging or practicing with GGK.

Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Pyotr got up from his bed and stretched. A look at the clock told him that he had around one and a half hours until his first class, but experience told him that he would need all that time to properly get ready. After all, he had to look his best, even if he was feeling like garbage that had been left out in the sun. So, Pyotr grabbed his phone from it’s charging port, grabbed his bag of toiletries and two big, fluffy towels, and set out for the community showers, which by now were usually quite empty, the early crowd already gone and the late crowd not up yet.

The hot water felt good on his skin, and for a minute Pyotr forgot what he was supposed to be sad about. So, he hummed to himself as he washed his hair, just enjoying having time for himself. Only when he rinsed the conditioner out of his hair did the blue-eyed boy pop back into his head, making his stomach drop. Ah yes, Spencer. He’d have to face him again today, in his first class, of all things.

Now significantly less motivated, he used the first towel to bundle up his hair, dried himself off, and exited the shower cabin wrapped in his second towel. Standing in front of the mirror, Pyotr let out a small noise of defeat. He’d still have to do his skin care routine, even if he was having an emotional crisis.

-

Still wrapped in his towels, Pyotr entered his room again. The clock read 9 am. He still had an hour left before he had to sit and endure Mr. Ertegun’s class as if he wasn’t totally crushed because of his teaching assistant. He promised himself to not outwardly show his unhappiness, as to avoid making anyone worry, especially Spencer. The last thing he needed was a heart-to-heart with the man that had stolen and stomped on his.

God, he was being dramatic, and he knew it. And yet, he couldn’t help himself.

Opening the closet door, he first fished out one of his binders and a pair of boxers. The towels were damp, and he wasn’t about to roam the kitchen in his birthday suit. So, he dropped his towels and put the underwear on, nearly getting his head stuck in his binder as he went. Even after nearly six years of wearing one of those things, he couldn’t resist trying to put it one while still wet from the shower. He couldn’t wait for his top surgery, which he would be having during summer break. He was never gonna wear shirts again after that, he told himself.

Now at least somewhat decent, Pyotr eyed himself in a mirror. His hair was starting to curl as it dried, which left him with his trademark hairstyle. Many people thought he curled it, but all he really did was dye it and let it do its own thing. As his eyes wandered, they landed on the stars tattooed onto his side, wandering from his hipbone up to his ribs. They had been his first tattoo, and he loved them dearly. They only further motivated him to wear cropped shirts, to make sure his little star shower was as visible as possible.

For now, he left them uncovered as he trudged into the kitchen in search of something tasty to hopefully kick off his day with a little more energy. As he chopped some strawberries to add to his yoghurt, it struck him that he had never seen Roddy eat breakfast in their many years of friendship. Already, he had seen Ezekiel devour an inhuman amount of eggs and toast thrice, but all that Roddy seemed to have was a cup of black coffee, if even that. As he sat down on their tiny dining table, he made a mental note to bring it up with his friend as soon as he saw him. Didn’t he know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day? He couldn’t let his childhood friend skip that for, he assumed, cereal bars or vending machine snacks. After all, he had to get hungry at some point during classes, right?

He finished his bowl of yoghurt and put it into the dishwasher, glancing at the clock again. 9:20 am. It was time to get dressed. As it was always quite warm on Mars, Pyotr decided to go for one of his favorite shirts, a simple black cropped t-shirt with pink text on it, spelling out the word “starlight”, paired with some baggy camo pants and sneakers. To match the silver of his piercings, he also decided to wear a few silver armbands and rings. He had an image to uphold, whether he was feeling it or not.

9:45 am. It was time to get going. With a last look at his reflection, Pyotr grabbed his bag and made his way towards the front door, putting in ear buds as he walked. He was definitely gonna need music to get through today.

-

As he entered the classroom, Pyotr breathed a sigh of relief. Spencer, at the front of the course room, was holding a conversation with a female student, and thus hadn’t noticed him enter. Passing some groups of classmates sitting on their desks and chatting before the start of class, Pyotr made his way to his usual seat, situated more or less in the center of the second row. There, he unpacked his laptop and started it up, deciding to use the few minutes he had until his teacher showed up to reply to some tweets from fans.

At least that’s what he meant to do, before getting interrupted by the message tone ringing through his ear buds. Weird, his friends were all in their classes right now, and were usually too busy to text him. He decided to check his phone, just in case there was an emergency going on. Maybe Roddy had run into Mr. Ertegun in the halls, or GGK had some new existential wisdom she just _had_ to share with him immediately. The notification, however, was far from what he expected.

 _New message from **Spencer** : “_hey Pyotr, let’s talk after class :-) _”_

Immediately, a tingle went up Pyotr’s spine, making him blush. “God dammit”, he thought, “does he even know how much he’s playing with my feelings?”

For the rest of class, Pyotr couldn’t seem to keep his focus on the topic Mr. Ertegun was discussing. He tried, he really did, but no matter how much he liked attending lectures like this one, his eyes kept wandering over to the teaching assistant, seemingly on their own. What had been the motivation behind that text? He raked his brain for any logical explanation, but he failed to find any. The way Spencer looked that day wasn’t especially helpful in Pyotr’s attempts of thinking rationally.

Spencer was deep in concentration, regarding a stack of papers Pyotr assumed to be tests he was grading. A strand of hair had separated from the otherwise immaculate styling and was now dangling in front of his icy blue eyes, which were trained on the test in front of him. Pyotr wished he could reach out and tuck it behind his ear, his heart aching at the idea of the intimate gesture. To his surprise, he also noted that the older man had traded his usual button-up-and-cardigan combo for a long-sleeved crew neck shirt in a crisp white. He looked almost casual, which contrasted the usual dressed-up style Pyotr had come to expect of him in the past week. Before he could continue to ponder the reason for the change in wardrobe, Spencer’s eyes suddenly met his.

Flustered, Pyotr immediately looked away, but not before noticing the corners of Spencer’s mouth raise in a smile that was almost… affectionate. He chalked that up to the fact that he had only caught a short glimpse of it, and tried, once again, to pay attention to the lecture he was sitting in. And, as he had the times before, he failed. Defeated, Pyotr decided that maybe venting his frustration on social media would help. Obviously, he couldn’t vlog in the middle of class, but he could probably get away with a few tweets. Surely, his fans would appreciate the live insight into his daily struggles, maybe even sympathize with them.

 ** _@thePyotr_** _tweeted_ : “Remember the prince charming I mentioned? He’s, like, super taken :( That wouldn’t be so bad, but I have to keep looking at him in every lesson and it’s haaaaard. Even WORSE: He wants to talk to me after class and I don’t know how to act. Pls send help.”

Mere seconds after the tweet was sent, the first likes and replies appeared, his fans reassuring him and telling him that he would surely find better, and not to let the situation get him down. He really loved his fans and couldn’t be more grateful to have them. After reading through a few more replies, Pyotr closed the thread, deciding to scroll through his timeline for a bit. This, however, quickly got boring, so Pyotr decided to check out some of the accounts twitter recommended to him. Most of them were either brands or vloggers, but there was one that caught his eye. An account with a nondescript profile picture of a stack of papers. For some reason, this intrigued him, and he clicked on the picture to view the page.

Kyle B., freelance journalist. The accounts description invited him to follow a link to a blog, apparently containing this journalist’s work.

Kyle. The realization hit Pyotr like a pound of bricks. Could it really be? What were the odds of the twitter algorithm showing him the twitter profile of Spencer’s boyfriend? The universe really didn’t seem to like him right now. Still, he couldn’t be sure that it was Spencer’s boyfriend just yet. After all, Kyle was a (worryingly) common name. So Pyotr decided to check out some of the tweets. He found his answer only three posts down, in a tweet posted just yesterday:

 ** _@KyleBJournalism_** _tweeted_ : “Just landed, jetlag yet to hit. Prepare for some scoops on neuroscience and the unethical practices behind much of the research, up on my blog next Monday!”

Oh wonderful. He really had stumbled upon the one person he did not want to know about. Just as he closed the tab, musing about why the universe had forsaken him and whether GGK could fix it, the bell rang. It was time to talk to Spencer, for better or for worse.

-

Pyotr took his time with packing up, both to make sure his classmates had left the room and to draw out the conversation for a bit longer. Had Spencer somehow caught wind of Pyotr’s crush? Was he about to be turned down without even confessing in the first place? He sighed as he pulled the zipper of his bag closed, making an effort to look cheerful as he shouldered his backpack and made his way down to where Spencer was standing, smiling warmly at him.

The blonde pushed himself off of the desk he was leaning on, eyes sparkling with what Pyotr assumed was excitement. Weird, he didn’t expect anyone to be _excited_ about rejecting someone else. Was he really that bad?

Spencer cleared his throat before speaking: “So. Uhm. I know this might sound a bit weird, but you seemed a bit off yesterday, and today too.”

Great, now he was being critiqued for his emotional responses too? Geez, if Spencer wasn’t that cute Pyotr might’ve considered being offended.

“So, I was wondering if you maybe wanted to grab some coffee with me and Kyle after class? I know it seems a bit unorthodox, but he’s a super nice guy and I think you’d really get along well.” By now, Pyotr could swear the man before him was starting to blush. “It’s just that you seem kinda stressed, and I thought that you could maybe use a distraction? You don’t have to say yes, of course, it was just an idea.”

Pyotr wasn’t sure if he’d heard correctly. Grabbing coffee sounded great, especially with Spencer, but _with his boyfriend?_ Was Spencer really _that_ clueless? Then again, he, hadn’t been turned down, so really, it could’ve been worse. What did he really have to lose at this point?

“Sure! I’d love to, I really _have_ been quite stressed.” He gave his most charming smile to really drive home the point of how excited (and totally not jealous) he was about this.

Spencer seemed surprised with that response, and took a second before answering: “Oh, great! Wonderful! How many more classes do you have today? I’ll wait for you after your last!”

“Oh, actually, Mr. Skip cancelled Musical Theory for today, so I only have one more class, Broadcast and AI, with Mr. Benito.” Pyotr replied, trying not to flush red at the thought of his prince charming waiting for him.

“Perfect, that means you’ll be out around 2pm. I’ll come pick you up then.”

And with that, the conversation was over before Pyotr could even compute what had happened. He was in a stupor as he entered his next class, only to be ripped from is daydream by his teacher’s voice:

“Oh, Pyotr! Brilliant, you’re here. Sit down, and while I have your attention, why don’t you prepare yourself for a second and present your project first!”

-

With all the chaos prevailing in Mr. Benito’s class, Pyotr had almost forgotten about his coffee not-date by the time the bell rang again. At least until he left the classroom after an extended chat with his teacher to find Spencer waiting outside, now wearing a jean jacket over his crewneck. God, he looked so good like that.

But Pyotr was chill. Totally chill. Definitely not about to turn as red as a tomato. At least that’s what he told himself as Spencer extended a hand to him, giving him a look that said “C’mon, let’s go”. Pyotr, definitely not a gay mess, ignored the others hand, and greeted the blonde with a smile before moving towards the exit, trying to seem aloof.

“Soo, where are we meeting with your boyfriend?”, Pyotr asked as Spencer caught up with him, trying to not let his voice crack on the last word.

Spencer, oblivious as ever, gave Pyotr a big smile before answering: “Oh, it’s just a small coffee shop near the Earth History Museum. I go there a lot; they have the best coffee on Mars. Since Kyle’s probably going to be there earlier than us, I asked him to find some seats for us.”

After that, they walked in silence for a few minutes.

Pyotr, anxious to break that silence, kicked a small pebble on the ground in front of him. “Say, Spencer, what do you usually do, outside of being a teaching assistant and stuff?”, he asked, acting like he hadn’t stalked his TA on every available social media platform.

“Ah, the usual stuff, I guess. I read a lot, and I really like music. Oh, I nearly forgot! I do horse riding sometimes when I’m visiting home. I have my own stallion; his name is Hermes.” He actually looked bashful as he spoke, aware how rare and expensive real horses were on Mars.

“That’s amazing! I’ve always wanted to see a real horse!”, he stopped for a second, realizing the implications of what he just said, before quickly continuing, “I’m in a band, but you probably haven’t heard of us, yet. But just you wait, we’re gonna make it big once we release our first album! I also vlog, I guess you could call me a social media influencer. But I’m not that shallow, I love all of my fans!” There he was again, the Pyotr most people knew. Talking about his fans and his band with GGK made him giddy with pride. He’d worked hard for it, after all.

“Oh, I know; My boyfriend watches your vlogs.”

Pyotr froze.

Then the alarm bells went off in his head. He thought back to all the mentions of Spencer he’d had in his vlogs, all the swooning and gushing. His face flushed red as he tried to regain his composure. If he could pretend t be straight for sixteen years, he could pretend to not be shocked for a few minutes.

“Oh that’s. That’s great! I hope he enjoys them, I put a lot of effort into every one of them.”, he said in his usual cheery tone, even managing a joking wink he regretted immediately after.

Spencer laughed, and Pyotr’s heart skipped several beats. He really had fallen for the taller boy.

“I must admit, I haven’t gotten around to watching one of your videos, but I’m sure they’re great. After all, you managed to impress Kyle with them.”

As Pyotr opened his mouth to reply, he realized that Spencer had stopped walking.

“Here we are! It doesn’t look like much, but trust me, you won’t be disappointed. Come on!”, he grabbed Pyotr’s arm, unaware of the blush spreading in the other’s face, “I think I see Kyle!”

So Pyotr let himself be pulled to a cozy looking spot in the corner of the building, three big cushioned chairs arranged around a table in a peculiar shape, one chair at the top of the table, with the two others to the right of it. In one of them, the one facing them directly, a man was sitting, still unaware of the two people approaching him as he typed away on a laptop. He had dark blonde hair, tied up into a messy half-bun. As he finally looked up and faced them, Pyotr noticed how beautiful he really was. His eyes were a vibrant blue with a hint of turquoise, hidden behind a pair of glasses with a thin silver frame, and his facial hair was neatly trimmed. If this was really Kyle, then the universe really was playing tricks on him.

His name was _Kyle,_ for god’s sake, he’s not supposed to be hot with a name like _that_.

The man smiled as he got up, extending his hand to Pyotr. “Hey, I’m Kyle, big fan of your vlogs.”, he said with a voice that made Pyotr jealous. He gave a smile in return.

“Pow! I always love meeting new people, it’s a pleasure, Kyle.”

He moved aside to give Kyle access to Spencer and moved towards one of the free seats, fiddling with his backpack so he wouldn’t have to watch Spencer and Kyle greet each other. He wasn’t certain his heart could take that.

Seconds later, the two of them sank into their respective seats, Spencer next to Pyotr and Kyle adjacent to them.

Pyotr was the first to speak up. “So, I’ve heard you just came back from some journalism trip. How was it?”

And just like that, they fell into easy conversation. Kyle talked about his job, explaining how he lost hearing in his right ear after an incident in a war zone. Suddenly Pyotr was very aware of how they were seated. But Kyle spoke of the incident so casually that he decided not to make a big deal out of it. In a way, it made Kyle more charming.

The topic shifted, and soon they were discussing campus gossip, which Kyle was surprisingly well caught up on.

“See, the girls in my course are saying that they spotted Mr. Ertegun at a club, but then again they were _super_ wasted that night, so who knows”, Pyotr mused.

“Like, as a patron?”

“Nono, as a _DJ!”_ , he laughed, earing a snort from Kyle.

Only Spencer wasn’t laughing. “You know, it might’ve actually been him.”, he said, a knowing smile on his face.

“What? No way! Where did you get that idea?”, Pyotr asked, disbelief written all over his face.

“I’m not really supposed to say, but if I _must...”_ his eyes sparked with mischief, “Mr. Ertegun told me he does music stuff on the side, he didn’t get more precise than that. So, it’s possible that this is what he meant by it.”

“Oh my god. that’s _glorious._ ” Kyle was now full on laughing.

The conversation continued like that, Spencer and Pyotr sharing rumors and Kyle laughing and asking questions. That is, until Pyotr brought up the mystery surrounding their missing roommate.

“Wait. Did you say Tao?”, Kyle asked, looking slightly taken aback.

“Yeah, I don’t know his last name though. They never told us that.”

“It’s probably a coincidence, but there was a Tao involved in the neuroscience scandals I was investigating. Never saw him myself, he went into hiding after reports of human trials came to light.” As he noticed the worry in Pyotr’s eyes, he quickly added: “Ah, there’s nothing to worry about Pyotr. Even if that was the same Tao, it’s pretty certain that he fled to Earth.”

Somehow, that actually calmed Pyotr’s fear. Honestly, _what were the odds_. It must’ve been one of those weird coincidences. They quickly brushed that topic off and moved on to less uncomfortable things. At least for a bit.

Before long, Pyotr’s hyperactivity stabbed him in the back. Before he could stop himself, he asked: “So, how did you guys meet?”

Why did he keep doing this to himself?

Kyle was the one that answered; “It’s a funny story, actually. I was researching for an article about Spencer’s mom, when she was a presidential candidate last year. I ran into spencer during that investigation and he agreed to help me. I think we really hit it off after we jumped off that bridge in Alba City.”

“You jumped off of a bridge? How are you guys not dead?”

“To be precise,” Spencer chimed in, “he dragged me off of that bridge.”

“Something got in the way and I had to act fast, okay?”

-

Somehow, without any of them realizing, the sun had set by the time they left the coffee shop. So, Kyle and Spencer insisted on walking Pyotr back to his dorm to make sure he got there safely. Pyotr definitely didn’t object.

And that’s how he found himself walking between Spencer and Kyle, still making stupid jokes. Kyle and he had figured out that they both speak Russian, and (at least for poor Spencer), it had gone downhill form there.

As they were walking, Pyotr was suddenly hit by the realization that he was the shortest out of the three. Not by too much, but it was still noticeable. He turned to look at both of them while they talked, trying to figure out which of them was the taller one.

Suddenly, Kyle’s hand brushed his.

Pyotr’s heart skipped a beat. Everything inside him stopped for a second, and then rushed twice as fast. No. _No._ One crush on a taken person was bad enough, he did _not_ need a second one, especially if these two crushes were dating _each other_.

But the butterflies in his stomach didn’t care.

With Pyotr still processing that emotional turmoil, the trio arrived at the dorm building. Spencer, now back to being courteous, reached out to pat Pyotr’s shoulder as a goodbye, but the green haired boy wasn’t having any of that, and instead half-tackled Spencer into a hug.

“Bye.”

If the universe was going to play its games with him, he would play back.

After a moment that felt like forever but was probably just a second, they separated. He bid Kyle goodbye the same way, though he was more prepared and actually pulled Pyotr into the hug.

He could’ve sworn they were blushing as much as him.

It only hit after they were gone. Oh god, what had he just done.

He didn’t have much time to overthink his actions though, as he was immediately tackled as soon as he opened the door to his dorm.

Roddy was on him. Literally.

“PYOTR! Oh, thank god you’re back. I need your help. Mr. Ertegun asked me to help him with an AI project!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back after entirely too long. Quarantine has given me time to write more so here we are with a long chapter to make up for the lazy. As always, ginormous thanks to my boyfriend (@asmallnerd on tumblr) whose fanart inspires this fic a lot (the star tattoo was his design) and a big shoutout to @pajama-cats here and on tumblr for writing the best carole and tuesday fics and generally being super awesome!


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